Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan is now Atmos Rewards, with Hawaiian Airlines’ HawaiianMiles set to join on October 1, 2025. Let’s unpack what is changing at Alaska Airlines.
Official: Atmos Rewards – The Combined Loyalty Program Of Alaska Airlines + Hawaiian Airlines
When I wrote last week about the leak of “Atmos” as the new loyalty program name for Alaska Airlines, I wondered whether Alaska Airlines would kill the goose that lays the golden eggs…it remains the most unique in the U.S. airline industry.
As Alaska explains it, “The Atmos Rewards name is designed to inspire wonder. It’s a play on ‘atmosphere,’ embodying an elevated brand that takes travelers to new heights through a visual identity reminiscent of an airplane window, inspiring flyers to dream. The soft gradients, smoothly transitioning in color and intensity, harmoniously weave together the blue of Alaska and the purple and pink of Hawaiian.”
The name is one thing, but what about the program itself? Other than increasing requirements for top-tier status (which makes sense in light of the new upgrade perk I’ll address below), everything you liked about Mileage Plan is sticking around in Atmos Rewards.
Earn Status Three Ways, Including Distance Flown
Alaska is the last major US carrier to award miles based on distance flown, not price paid. It was not clear to me whether this would continue in the new program, but it will now be one of three options to earn both redeemable points and status:
- Distance traveled: Earn based on how far you go with one point for every mile flown. Alaska says this option may be best for “thrifty travelers who take cross-country or international trips.”
- Price paid: Earn five points for every $1 spent when purchasing a flight (and on redemptions, one status point for every 20 points you redeem). This includes airfare and upgrades purchased in premium cabins. Alaska says this option may be best “for travelers flying in our premium cabins, including our lie-flat suites, this might be the best choice.
- Segments flown: Earn a flat 500 points for each flight segment flown (plus 500 status points for every award redemption). For flyers who take numerous short-distance flights, such as those between Neighbor Islands in Hawai`i or within California, this option guarantees a set number of points on every trip.
Travelers can pick one method and change it once per year.
I practically begged Alaska Airlines to do it this way in my August 9th post and I am very happy to see that distance traveled remains an option in the new program.
Note: nothing changes for 2025, but this three-tiered option will be available starting in 2026 (for 2027 qualification).
Miles are gone, at least in terms of that word. Atmos Rewards points replace redeemable miles while Atmos Rewards status points replace elite qualifying miles.
Status Tiers
The new program will offer four status tiers:
- Atmos Silver – 20K status points – replaces MVP status (oneworld Ruby)
- Atmos Gold – 40K status points – replaces MVP Gold status (oneworld Sapphire)
- Atmos Platinum – 80K status points – replaces MVP Gold 75K status (oneworld Emerald)
- Atmos Titanium – 135K status points – replaces MVP Gold 100K status (oneworld Emerald)
As you can see, Platinum will require 80K status points (up 5K from MVP Gold 75K) and Titanium will require 135K status points (up 35K from MVP Gold 100K).
Upgrades
Complimentary elite upgrades will continue and expand to Hawaiian Airlines in spring 2026 on flights within North America, including all Mainland flights.
For Atmos Titanium members, Alaska Airlines will offer complimentary, day-of-departure upgrades into “global business class” for them and a companion without requiring points or a certificate. This will include longhaul flights on both Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines.
On October 1, 2025, you’ll be able to use your upgrade certificates to join the Business Class waitlist on select international routes, including Tokyo, Seoul, and Australia.
Milestone Awards
Alaska Airlines will offer Milestone Awards starting at 10K status points earned. Details have not yet been revealed.
No Change On The Redemption Side (Yet)
Redemption pricing is staying unchanged for now. Redemption awards start as low as 4.5K points each.
Share Status Perks
All members can continue to share their rewards, including lounge passes and upgrade certificates.
Earn Status With Credit Card Spending + New Premium Credit Card
A new Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite Card, co-branded with Bank of America, which I will discuss in a separate post, will help cardholders reach status and milestones even faster by earning 1 status point for every $2 spent on eligible purchases. All three credit card products will offer the chance to earn status miles:
- The Atmos Rewards Ascent Visa Signature Card
- 1 status point per $3 spent
- capped at 30,000 status points in 2025
- uncapped starting in 2026
- The Atmos Rewards Visa Business Card
- 1 status point per $3 spent
- capped at 30,000 status points in 2025
- uncapped starting in 2026
- The Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite Card earns
- 1 status point per $2 spent
- uncapped; furthermore
- 10,000 status points via an annual deposit
The new Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite Card carries a $395 annual fee and comes with an annual 25,000-point Global Companion Award (25,000 points off a companion award ticket on Alaska or any of its partners). If you spend $60,000 on the card in a year, the card also offers a 100,000-point Global Companion Award annually.
Free Starlink Internet Coming
Alaska Airlines will add Starlink high-speed to its fleet (Hawaiian Airlines has already begun this). Installation on Alaska’s fleet is expected to begin in 2026 and be fully installed in 2027.
How Alaska Airlines Is Describing New Program
Andrew Harrison, chief commercial officer at Alaska Airlines explained:
“Atmos Rewards is more than a loyalty program – it’s a reflection of how guests travel today. We listened to what our members value most and built a program that’s grounded in generosity, personalization and practicality. We’re putting our members in the pilot’s seat, giving them control over how they earn and redeem, while honoring the legacy and values of both Alaska and Hawaiian.”
Meanwhile, Brett Catlin, the Vice President of Loyalty, Alliances and Sales at Alaska Airlines, announced:
“Atmos Rewards is designed to set a new standard for airline loyalty – more generous, more flexible and easier to use, whether members are flying across the globe or just across the Islands. With the combination of Alaska and Hawaiian, we seized a rare opportunity to imagine how we could make the most generous loyalty program even better. With industry-first features like customizable ways to earn and unique benefits tailored to how people travel, we’re giving our guests more control, more value and more reasons to engage.”
It’s rare that I strongly echo carefully-worded PR statements like this, but I think Catlin is exactly right here: these changes do give frequent flyers more control, more value, and more reasons to engage.
Status Matches
Alaska Airlines will offer status matches for those looking to jump ship from other programs. This is something I am strongly considering…I’ll lay out my thoughts on this at a future time. Stay tuned for more info.
CONCLUSION
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan is now officially Atmos Rewards, with HawaiianMiles merging in on October 1st. This is an exciting evolution for Alaska Airlines and I see very little downside to the new program (flyers who have to fly 135K instead of 100K miles to earn top-tier status may be disappointed). Kudos to Alaska Airlines for listening to members and offering a new loyalty program that nicely distinguishes itself from its US peers.
Thanks for the summary. With earnings, will multipliers based on status and class of service continue? Could not find that definitively so far.
We are still waiting on that, but I’d imagine that is the case (and would be very disappointed if that were not the case).
Were can you find you current level of status for the year and how far to go to the next tier?
Seems solid. And great news for West Coast flyers. But for the rest of the country there is nothing here to go after. Sorry, I’m not connecting in Seattle to go to Denver.
Nicely written summary. Someone else wrote a confusing article about Atmost so I stopped reading and thought “I wonder if Matthew has a similar article that is more clearly written?” He does and it’s on Live and Let’s Fly! So what if there are typos occasionally in some articles, the meat of the articles are great!
Still, I am in the burn mode. Burned all my hotel and car rental points as well as Delta and United. American and Alaska are next before they become pesos, a process that has already started.
Atmos sounds more like a hifi system.
AS needs to open a SE hub… may I recommend MCO. We have plenty of space to expand and even add a 5th runway!